Terrace Court, 19 Dundonald St: 30 Large Suites off Church-Wellesley

Terrace Court is the kind of building most condo searches miss. It is a six-storey, 30-suite boutique condominium on Dundonald Street, a short side street between Yonge and Church just north of Wellesley, and its suites start at roughly the size where most new downtown condos stop. If you want real square footage and a small building in the Village, it is worth knowing about. I’m Jatin Dua, RE/MAX Quantum Realty.

A boutique building from the early 1990s

Terrace Court’s condominium corporation, MTCC-688, was registered in May 1991, which places it among the older condominiums in the Church-Wellesley area. One listing source describes the building as developed in 1985, which more likely reflects when the project started than when it registered. Ask for the declaration if the exact construction date matters to your lender or insurer.

With just 30 suites across six storeys, this is about as small as a building with an elevator gets downtown. That means you will likely know your neighbours, decisions at the board level are made by a handful of owners, and there is no anonymity of the kind you get in a 400-suite tower.

Public information on this building is thin. I could not find a credited architect or detailed design history, so I am not going to guess at it. What I can tell you is what the size, age and fee structure mean for a buyer.

Suites that start where new condos stop

Suites here range from about 850 to 1,800 square feet. To put that in context, most of the newer towers around Yonge and Wellesley are selling suites in the 400 to 700 square foot range. At Terrace Court the smallest plans are roughly the size of a generous two-bedroom in a new building.

The two suites currently on the market are both two-bedrooms, one in the 900-square-foot range and one without a listed size. That suits downsizers who are leaving a house and want to keep their furniture, couples who both work from home, and anyone tired of choosing between a den and a dining table.

Older buildings of this size usually carry original or once-renovated kitchens and bathrooms, and the condition will vary suite by suite. Budget for updates and compare suites on their finishes, not just their square footage.

Small-building economics

A 30-suite corporation splits its fixed costs, such as insurance, the elevator, the roof and the garage, among very few owners. That is why fees in small buildings can look high per suite even when the building is well run. The flip side is that there is no expensive amenity program to maintain: the listed amenities are a party room, barbecues and visitor parking.

It also means one big repair, like a roof, an elevator modernization or garage waterproofing, lands on a small number of owners. In a building registered in 1991, several of those items are either recently done or coming due. The reserve fund study will tell you which, and in a building this small it is the single most important document to read.

Small buildings also have small rule books in practice. Any limits on leasing, pets, renovations or flooring are set in the declaration and rules, and with so few owners they can matter a great deal day to day. I have not seen this building’s rules, so I am not going to describe them; read them in the status certificate package before you firm up, especially if you plan to renovate or rent the suite out.

Financing is worth a thought too. Some lenders look harder at very small condominium corporations, so line up your mortgage early and give your lender the status certificate as soon as you have it.

Dundonald Street and the Village

Dundonald is a short, residential side street, and that is the appeal. You are steps from the Church Street strip of the Village and from the Yonge Street shops and services, but your front door opens onto a quiet block rather than a main road. For a large-suite owner who works from home, that combination of a quiet street and everything within walking distance is hard to find.

This part of downtown is changing quickly, with many tall towers built or proposed on Yonge, Wellesley and Church. A low-rise building on a side street will not block much, but it can be affected by new towers around it, so check what is planned on neighbouring lots. Transit, school and Walk Score details are in the data panel on this page.

Pricing and fees in context

The two current listings, both two-bedrooms, are asking from about $750,000 to $988,000, with monthly fees ranging from roughly $1,022 to $1,643. Those fees include parking and water along with common elements and insurance, and with suites this large the per-foot fee is not out of line for an older downtown building.

Because Terrace Court has only 30 suites, sales are infrequent and there is no reliable building-wide average price per square foot. For context, other older boutique buildings in Church-Wellesley, such as 8 Wellesley Street East, The Uxbridge and 86 Gloucester, average roughly $600 to $690 per square foot, while newer towers like Vox are closer to $970. Expect Terrace Court to price in the older-building band, adjusted for suite size and condition.

When comparables are this thin, it pays to look at a few years of aggregate sales. My building sold report is a good starting point, and I am happy to walk through the numbers on a call.

Building specifications

Amenities at Terrace Court

There is no gym or concierge listed, so the amenity package is minimal. For most buyers here that is the point: you pay for space in your suite, not for shared rooms you will not use.

Jatin’s honest take on Terrace Court

Terrace Court — frequently asked questions

Looking at Church–Wellesley, Corktown, Moss Park and Cabbagetown more broadly? Start with my Toronto community guide — the neighbourhoods, what each pocket is like, and how they compare.